San Francisco-based Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger LLP joins 500+ law firms in support of Perkins Coie resistance to Trump overreach
April 7, 2025San Francisco, Calif. – Leading California public interest law firm Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger LLP is one of 507 firms nationwide to sign on to an amicus curiae, or friend of the court, brief submitted to the US District Court in Washington, DC on Friday. The brief was filed in support of Perkins Coie LLP in its suit against the US Department of Justice in response to a March 6 Executive Order issued by President Trump that was intended to, as noted in the brief, impose “punitive sanctions on leading law firms in undisguised retaliation for representations that the firm, or its former partners, have undertaken.”
“We are proud to stand with our fellow attorneys from around the country against the illegal executive orders President Trump has issued in recent weeks with the clear intention of chilling opposition to his Constitutional overreach,” said Catherine Engberg, managing partner of Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger.
As noted in the brief, “Our adversarial system depends upon zealous advocates litigating each side of a case with equal vigor; that is how impartial judges arrive at just, informed decisions that vindicate the rule of law. … In too many countries and instances to name, regimes have disbarred, prosecuted and jailed lawyers who dared to represent opposition figures or challenge government actions, with predictable results for the rule of law and the integrity of the legal profession.”
“We urge the courts to take a firm stand against the President’s abuse of power,” added Engberg. “Nothing short of our democratic form of government is at stake.”